There is also the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), located in Manhattan.

Crowds daily gather on the steps in front of the neoclassical façade

The Metropolitan Museum of Art, often referred to simply as the Met, is one of the world's largest and most important art museums, located on the eastern edge of Central Park in Manhattan, New York. It also comprises a building complex known as "The Cloisters" in Fort Tryon Park at the north end of Manhattan Island overlooking the Hudson River which features medieval art.

Its massive collection ranges from treasures of Classical Antiquity to nearly all the European masters, as well as an extensive collection of American art. It also possesses extensive holdings in Egyptian—including the Temple of Dendur —African, Asian, Oceanic, Middle Eastern and Islamic art. The museum also contains recreations of notable interiors by famous American architect Frank Lloyd Wright, and, somewhat incongruously, a collection of antique weapons and armor. One of The Met's latest purchases and the most expensive piece of art is Duccio's Madonna and Child, costing the museum 45 million dollars. The painting is only 8 x 11 inches.

The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum and Whitney Museum of American Art are near the museum's main building. The museum is widely considered to be among the best in the world.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art opened on February 20, 1872. Its director from 1955 to his death on May 11, 1966, was James J. Rorimer . He was succeeded by Thomas Hoving, who served from March 17, 1967 to June 30, 1977. The current director is Phillipe de Montebello .

See also

• List of museums and cultural institutions in New York City

External links

• Metropolitan Museum of Art: official site
• Metropolitan Museum of Art: The Timeline of Art History
• Metropolitan Museum of Art: Pictures (from a French-language art site)